Stripping Away the Holiness of God

You hear it all the time. “Jesus Christ this” and “Jesus Christ that.” Maybe you’ve even uttered these words yourself: “Oh my God!” or “Oh, God!” I’ve caught myself laughing at others who’ve made such exclamations. I usually find myself trying to justify it by saying something like, “Oh well, they could be saying a lot worse.” And just like that, I whittle away at the holiness of God.

Jehovah God is a holy God. He is a force unlike any other. With a word he brought the human race to life. With a word he will send it into eternity (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Man has known since creation that the Lord is holy and to be revered. Adam and Eve hid the shame of their nakedness from a holy God in the Garden (Genesis 3:10). God’s name alone was so revered that the Hebrews would not even pronounce it! Moses removed his sandals when he stood before the Lord on holy ground. Men hid their faces from God because of his radiant holiness. Mountains shook because of God’s holiness (Exodus 19:18). Moses’ face was radiant after a holy encounter with Jehovah on Sinai (Exodus 34: 29).

Those who recognized that Jesus was God in flesh were in awe of his holiness. Thomas, when finally believing that Jesus was resurrected cried out, “My Lord and my God!” The “sinful” woman washed Jesus’ feet with her tears as an act of reverence to a holy God (Luke 7:37-39). Paul says that “every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord” when he returns to take us home (Philippians 2:10-12). John reveals a piece of his vision in Revelation 4:8, when he sees four creatures surrounding the throne of God saying, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty.”

The very name of God is holy. The Psalmists revered the name of the Lord (30:4; 97:12; 103:1; 145:21). God told his people not to profane his holy name (Leviticus 22:32). Psalm 113:3 says that the name of the Lord is to be praised. Why? Because his name is holy!

We worship, serve, and were created by a holy God. So why do so many people treat him in an unholy way? It’s bad enough to witness the world mocking and chipping away at the holiness of God. But to know that Christians are participating! Satan is doing everything he can to desensitize God’s people to God’s holiness. He’s using the media as a primary weapon in his arsenal. Just last week I rented a “family” movie that my kids could watch. It starred kids and was built around kids. For the most part, it was a cute movie. Silly, but cute. I was appalled, however, when three times the phrase “G_ _ Da_ _” was uttered! Now they don’t capitalize it (I guess out of “respect” for Christians), and it’s all one word. One of the three utterances was from the mouth of a child!

I realize I should expect no less from Satan’s favorite tool, Hollywood. But Christians are being bombarded with daily doses of God’s holiness being stripped away. And if you think it’s not making a difference, you’ve got your head in the sand! I say it’s time for Christians to start reclaiming the holiness of God! We must re-sensitize ourselves to that holiness and return to a more reverent posture. We must teach our children to respect the name of the Lord, or the next generation will have even less reverence for God’s holiness. Can one treat God and his name too reverently? I wonder if, in our quest for spiritual freedom, we have lost sight of the holiness of God?

God, you are holy. Your name is holy. Your words are holy. Your ways are holy. Forgive me, Father, for the times I have stripped you of your holiness through my words, actions, and inaction. Restore to your people a sense of awe and wonder of your holiness. Amen.

~ by hawkman64 on July 20, 2007.